With the growing reliance on networks, and accordingly network stability, network administrators need to be able to monitor and troubleshoot networks, which can be accomplished through use of monitoring devices on the networks. Examples of devices from which measurements may need to be taken include, for example, routers, switches, servers, clients, PCs, telecommunications equipment, voice gateways, etc. An example of a monitoring and/or troubleshooting of a network may include a network administrator viewing usage of a network on a display or having the capability to access additional measurement data of that network usage by drilling down to more detailed measurement data. Typically, the displaying of measurement data will include graphs or plots illustrating graphically the measurement data versus a predetermined unit, e.g., an average usage of a network per hour. Drilling down to more detailed measurement data may include the capability to access measurement data used in formulating such graphically illustrated measurement data, i.e., the ability to view or print out the raw data used in generating the graphic or reformulating the graphic based on more fine criteria.
Typically, the monitoring of such network devices is accomplished seamlessly since all the network devices may be controlled by one protocol, for example, SNMP. However, multiple other protocols exist, such as XML and CMIP, that are also used by the network devices when transferring measurement data or by a control unit collecting measurement data from multiple network devices. Similarly, measurement data, which is collected by a network device, transferred from the network device, and collected by a control unit, will have a particular format, e.g., floating point, integer, negative value capability, positive value capability, binary, hexadecimal, logarithmic, etc.
Scalar measurement data from a plurality of network devices that are not all monitored using the same protocol is typically defined as being heterogeneous as to its source, compared to scalar measurement data from a plurality of network devices, which are monitored using the same protocol, being defined as homogeneous. In networks containing network devices that are controlled by heterogeneous protocols, network administrators are required to individually monitor or display the network devices controlled by that protocol, separate from other network devices controlled by another protocol, or to monitor or display in a single graphic illustration measurement data from multiple network devices when all the network devices are not controlled by the same protocol. In some instances, network administrators create individualized simplified homogeneous solutions. For example, in a network containing CMIP and SNMP protocols, a CMIP management system can be set up with a gateway to receive SNMP data. The gateway then emulates the SNMP data to correspond to CMIP data based on a simplification of the differences between SNMP and CMIP data, so the measurement data can all be collected and displayed based on the CMIP protocol. However, such solutions must be individually designed, tested, and implemented. Further, individual design, testing, and implementation occupies valuable time and resources. A need exists for a universal data model that is able to commonly display the heterogeneous scalar measurement data.
The present invention provides a universal data model that is able to set a common threshold for heterogeneous scalar measurement data such that a contextual drilling into the heterogeneous scalar measurement data is operative from a display of the heterogeneous scalar measurement data.
The present invention provides a system for drilling into displayed heterogeneous measurement data by transforming collected heterogeneous scalar measurement data from heterogeneous network devices by using a mathematical transform to transform a heterogeneous scalar measurement data, from one of the network devices, into a homogeneous mathematical transform space so that the heterogeneous scalar measurement data is normalized, displaying the transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data, and drilling into the displayed transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data to display additional measurement data from which the displayed transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data is based.
The present invention provides a system that drills into displayed heterogeneous scalar measurement data, including a transforming unit to transform collected heterogeneous scalar measurement data from heterogeneous network devices by using a mathematical transform to transform a heterogeneous scalar measurement data, from one of the network devices, into a homogeneous mathematical transform space so that the heterogeneous scalar measurement data is normalized, a displaying unit to display the transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data, and a drilling unit to drill into the displayed transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data for display, by the display unit, of additional measurement data from which the displayed transformed heterogeneous scalar measurement data is based.
These together with other advantages that will be subsequently apparent, reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part hereof, wherein like numerals refer to like parts throughout.